From the Ashes
by Shinara66
Summary: This is a slight continuation to my last story, 'Save Me'. Will Callie and Arizona find their way back to another or have they played their parts in the others life?
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Two months had passed since Callie Torres had left her ex's hotel room.

Two months, three weeks, and six days.

On that same day, she'd returned to Mark's apartment and immediately begun packing her belongings. She'd needed to get away from everything that reminded her of her mistakes. She and Mark had not been the same since her desperate departure. It had been an unfortunate consequence of their actions, but unfortunate or not, Callie had tried to make the transition as painless as possible.

Mark had been hurt by her inability to talk with him. He'd not been able to understand everything that had been going on in Callie's head the entire time Arizona had been away. There was no way for him to understand. There was no way for her to explain the magnitude of everything that had happened, not only in recent months, but in recent hours. The older man had cornered her at the hospital the next day and questioned her on her sudden need to vacate his apartment.

_"What the hell is going on with you?" Mark asked._

_Callie sighed and looked around. Nurses and orderlies going about their everyday business slowed their pace when they saw the two of them huddled in a corner together. She didn't need more hospital gossip assaulting her and making a mockery out of her failures and mistakes._

_Setting her jaw and meeting Mark's blue-gray eyes, she replied, "Mark, you're my best friend. You've been around for all my break ups and you've picked up the pieces in the aftermath, but we need some space from one another. This co-dependence we have is unhealthy."_

_Mark stepped away from her and looked her over. Her eyes were brighter than they had been the day before and her, already glistening, skin seemed to glow from an unknown source. The woman who had left his apartment the previous day running after her ex was not the woman standing before him._

_Granted, his friend wasn't standing as tall as he knew she was capable, but from what he could see, she was no longer as broken as she'd been._

_"This has to do with Robbins? What happened?" he asked after a moment._

_Callie smiled, though Mark was unsure if it was from regret or hope. He watched as the dark haired woman crossed her arms and released a heavy breath._

_"I went to her hotel, Mark. At first, all we did was scream at each other and accuse the other for all of our problems. I'd never seen her like that." she added. Her eyes lost focus briefly as she remembered her argument with Arizona._

_The emotions from the previous day were still giving her an overload. She'd never taken part in so passionate an exchange in her life. Both she and Arizona had verbally assaulted the other with no mind as to how their words would have affected the other._

_Pain, betrayal, anger, and sadness had been at the forefront of their spat. Those emotions had laid the groundwork for everything else that had happened between them. From those emotions had come, remorse, understanding, lust, and finally, love._

_"Like what?" Mark questioned, breaking her reverie._

_Callie shook her head. "I can't explain it. Arizona has always been the type person to compartmentalize, you know? She smiles and laughs and ensures that people don't see what's really going on behind that mask. She had me fooled for so long that she was untouchable, but yesterday, I saw the person she hides from the world."_

_"So, you two are back on or what? Is she going back to Africa?"_

_Mark was unsure what to think. When Callie had come to him months ago and made it known that she wanted him to help her move on and forget, he'd been shocked. Callie was his friend. The two of them had been each others support system and he'd believed that their meaningless rolls in the hay were over._

_He had half expected Callie to stop him the first time. She hadn't. One time had turned into two and then three. Before either of them had known what had happened, they were both back to their old ways with each other._

_Mark hated that. He regretted allowing things to progress as far as they had. He knew Callie was hurting and was desperate for some connection with another living person. He'd known that and yet, despite knowing, he'd slept with her anyway. Despite knowing that he, himself, was in love with Lexie Grey, he'd still listened to the old Mark buried deep in his mind._

_When he'd walked into his living room the day before and seen Arizona standing in his door, he'd never felt more awful in his life. Not even when Derek had found out he'd slept with Addison. The look on Arizona's face had shattered his self image and in that moment, Mark had truly seen himself for the first time in his life. What he had seen had turned his stomach._

_He didn't want to be that guy. He had enjoyed being Callie's friend. He had enjoyed finally gaining Arizona's respect. He'd been growing, becoming a man. With one lousy lapse in judgment, he'd thrown away everything he'd worked so hard to build._

_"No, she's not going back to Africa, Mark. I can't really get into why. As far as us getting back together? I don't know. I just need time to think and get myself together. Cristina is letting me stay with her until I get my apartment back."_

_Callie's words curdled in Mark's ears. He knew what she was telling him. She was needing time away from him. Though he understood her reasons, a part of him still felt betrayed by her actions. He hadn't kept things going on his own._

_The old Mark probably would have argued with her. He probably would have made a sexist remark and ruined any chance of them maintaining their friendship. Alas, the new Mark, the Mark the older man wanted to be, only smiled, nodded his head and walked away from her. His friend. His sister._

Callie shook the memory from her mind and entered her apartment building. It felt good to be back in her own place. Normalcy was easier to obtain if one was surrounded by things that grounded them in their sense of self. The only negative feeling attached to being back in her apartment was the knowledge that Arizona wasn't with her.

The tall Latina had been back in her apartment for nearly three weeks and in that time, she'd not slept in her room once. Her room was still their room. Arizona's belongings had been packed away months earlier and when Callie had come across them while unpacking, she'd been so overcome with sorrow and longing that she'd given up on the idea of truly becoming settled.

For three weeks straight, Callie had slept on the couch. She'd only removed what items had been necessary to her every day life. She'd done her best to sort her belongings from Arizona's and had continued to try to ease back in to being herself.

Living alone had never been something Calliope Torres had been good at. From as far back as she could remember, she'd been steadily involved with one person after another and had moved from place to place accordingly. The prospect of living alone, without friends or lovers or fellow doctors had scared Callie. It still did.

Scared or not, Callie was determined to be the person Arizona had helped her to become. She was set on being a healthy, grounded, mature individual.

Entering her apartment, the raven haired woman laughed to herself. The notion sounded better in her head than it did when it came to its actual application. Her days were spent at the hospital. She surrounded herself with friends, sans Mark, and spent time between surgeries brushing up on her research. She paid more attention to her residents and, overall, tried to keep her head down.

After work, she occasionally joined Teddy or Meredith or Cristina at the bar across from the hospital, but more often than not, she simply returned to her apartment, ordered a pizza, and watched a movie.

Some people would probably have said that Callie was avoiding her life. They would have commented on her lack of a social circle, but to the ortho surgeon, those people understood very little about her.

She was trying to grow and become comfortable with herself. She was trying to move away from her self destructive tendencies. More than that, Callie was attempting to show Arizona that she could function without her and not become a mess in the process.

As she walked across her living room, Callie thought back to her first conversation with the blonde after their encounter at her hotel.

_"Well, I'm really sorry to hear that you handed the project over to someone else. The work would have reflected highly on the hospital and, well, after the shooting, we really need good publicity."_

_Arizona nodded her head at Chief Webber's words. She knew the man was more upset than he was letting on. When she'd decided to come in and speak with him, the blonde had come to the decision to not let him know of her true reasons for returning to the States. Using family and personal obligations as a cover, Arizona had managed to, for the most part, remain in Richard Webber's good graces._

_"Yes, sir. I understand. The plan I had for the project has been put into place and the doctor I left in charge has assured me that things will be carried out as I wished. The grant is still in my name, sir, so that alone should be good publicity. I regret that I won't be overseeing the project, but the end result will be just the same and that is what's really important."_

_Richard clasped his hands together and placed them on his desk in front of him. Biting his cheek, he regarded the blue-eyed woman in front of him._

_"You're right. Unfortunately though, you'll have to wait to continue your work here in the hospital. I offered Dr. Stark a temporary contract and, though your residents think very little of him, I'd hate to have to cut his time short. The contract I offered him was only six months. I wanted to see how he got along with the pace of things here at Seattle Grace. Rest assured, Dr. Robbins, when his contract is up, your job will be waiting on you. If you still want it, that is."_

_Arizona smiled fully and moved to stand from her chair across from the older man._

_"I can't wait, sir. Thank-you very much."_

_Exiting the Chief's office, the small blonde headed woman walked through familar halls and passed comforting rooms, nurses stations and surgical boards._

_As she was passing the first floor on-call room, a door to her immediate left opened suddenly._

_"Oh, I'm sorry. I-I didn't-" the owner of the startled voice stopped when they noticed with whom they were speaking._

_Arizona swallowed hard and let her eyes travel over Callie's scrub covered body. She'd always loved the way the other woman looked in those dark blue attending's scrubs._

_"Hey" she said shyly._

_Callie rubbed her eyes and focused on her once again. Leaning a hand, heavily, against the frame of the door, she replied, "Arizona, hey. Wh-what are you doing here? Are you okay?"_

_The blonde glanced around them and was surprised at the few amount of people walking the hospital this time of day. Glancing back at her ex, she couldn't help but attempt to peer inside the room behind the other woman. Was Callie alone? Was someone else with her? Was Mark in the room as well?_

_It had only been four days since Callie had left her hotel. Though the two of them had spoken at great length and Callie had informed her that she was no longer going to be sleeping with Mark Sloan, the blonde still couldn't help but wonder and cringe at the thought of the answer._

_"There's no on else in here, Arizona." the Latina said quietly reading her mind._

_The blue eyed woman attempted a smile, but the gesture fell short. "Sorry, it's not my business anyway."_

_Callie lowered her eyes sadly. Sighing deeply, she looked back to the blonde before gently grabbing her wrist and pulling her inside the room._

_Once the door was shut, Callie pressed Arizona between the door and her own body. She felt the tension that sprang up in the other woman's body at her closeness._

_Placing her hands on the door to either side of the blonde's head, Callie remained silent for a moment as she listened to the tight breathing of the woman in front of her. Her peace and salvation was standing so closely, it was painful. She hated the current state of their affairs. All she wanted to do was touch Arizona. Hug her. Kiss her. She wanted her love, her respect, her trust._

_"It is your business, Arizona."_

_The warmth of Callie's breath washed across the blonde's lips and caused her throat to tighten. Every inch of her body was in some contact with Callie's and the heat was making it difficult to think. She could feel her body trying to betray her. Callie's comforting, hot body was seducing her and she was fighting with everything she was to ignore the temptation of giving in to her heart's desire._

_Her brain came to her rescue and reminded her that, a very brief time ago, the woman in front of her had been beneath the body of Mark Sloan._

_"Callie, I can't do this. Please." she whispered. Her own breathing was shallow due to the fact that she refused to inhale too deeply. Doing so would have only increased her contact with the other woman and Arizona was trying desperately to minimize that._

_She heard the dark skinned woman take a deep breath before moving away from her. Relief flooded her and she found her mind able to think more clearly._

_Leaning against the door, she watched as Callie moved away from her and sat on the bed._

_"I'm sorry." she heard her ex say, "What are you doing here?"_

_Arizona swallowed hard and licked lips that were suddenly dry. She hadn't been expecting to run into Callie today. Things were still too fresh. Her mind was still processing what had happened, what had been said. Her heart was still fighting with itself on what it wanted. In short, Arizona was completely turned inside out. Being in an on-call room, with the one woman who made her question everything, was incredibly dangerous._

_"I was talking with the Chief. He's assured me that as soon as Dr. Stark's contract is up, I'll have my position back."_

_Callie smiled and tapped her foot nervously on the floor. Things were going to be harder than she'd expected. Arizona's reactions to her in close quarters were still far from where they used to be. The other woman still flinched and jumped and, overall, came across as nervous by her presence. She hated that, but, that was the way things were between them now._

_"That's good, Arizona." she said, as she tried to force a sense of happiness into her words._

_"Yeah."_

_An uncomfortable silence overcame the two women. It seemed to suck the very air from the room as suffocating as it was._

_"Did-did you tell the Chief why you-"_

_Arizona stopped her before she could finish asking the question. "No!" she said, harsher than she had intended._

_Callie's eyes widened before her face fell. The blonde noticed the defeated sag in her ex lover's shoulders and she sighed. Despite knowing that the woman on the bed had, very recently, slept with Mark Sloan, she still found that she couldn't hurt her._

_"No, Callie, I didn't. I don't want people knowing something so personal."_

_The Latina said nothing. Her only response was a slight, and very subtle, nod of her head. Her pager beeped at her and reminded her of why she had originally been leaving the on-call room._

_Standing up and walking towards the door, she stopped just shy of turning the handle when she reached the blonde. The other woman hadn't moved._

_Arizona was looking at her with unsure eyes and their close proximity caused her chest to spasm. She made sure she didn't corner the other woman, but she maintained their eye contact._

_The blonde was the first to move. Leaning towards her, Callie thought Arizona was going to kiss her, but when their foreheads touched, she realized that wasn't to be the case._

_Arizona simply rested her head against Callie's and tried not to get lost in her scent. She could sense the other woman's confusion and her burning desire to touch her. The blonde turned her head and brought her lips to within an inch of her ex's mouth. She heard Callie take in a deep breath and, as they breathed in the other's air, she wanted nothing more than to indulge herself in the feeling of the Latina's body. Bringing her left hand to the side of Callie's neck, the blonde sighed heavily and forced herself to pull away._

_She saw the dark skinned woman lean into her before she regained herself. When Callie's dark eyes found her own, Arizona saw in them a deep regret and a sorrowful need to reconnect. She hated being the reason behind the confusion she saw on the face in front of her._

_Turning away from Callie before she did something she'd regret, Arizona let her fingers slide across a tanned neck before she left the room._

Callie smiled ruefully as her mind finished replaying her encounter with her ex. She had wanted Arizona so badly that day. It had been too soon. She'd known that. The two of them had barely had time to adjust to the fact that Arizona was back, let alone digest everything else that had happened between them.

Callie had known that, but her body had been very hard pressed to listen. It had been drawn to Arizona; the force so powerful, it had both frightened and amazed her.

Her thoughts brought her to the bathroom in her guestroom (which had been Cristina's room several months ago) Stripping out of her clothing, she turned on the hot water in her bathtub before adjusting the knob to the cold water. Turning her shower head on, she sighed and stepped under the spray of hot water.

_"Hello?"_

_The groggy voice on the other end of the phone barely sounded alive, let alone, human._

_Teddy Altman looked confused before, "Callie?"_

_"Uh-huh. What's...matter?"_

_Again, the slurred speech and half sentences left Teddy feeling as though she were having a one sided conversation. She'd known calling Callie so late was a long shot, but the slender woman was at a loss. Hoping to shock Callie's brain into wakefulness, Teddy continued._

_"Callie, it's Arizona."_

_Her plan worked liked charm. She heard, what she assumed to be, sheets rustling before "What's wrong? Is she okay?"_

_The change in the other woman's speech and level of alertness was almost palpable. It amazed Teddy, to say the least._

_"I don't know, Callie. We haven't gotten a chance to talk much since she's been living with me. I heard her having a nightmare. When I tried to wake her up, she clocked me pretty good across the jaw."_

_Callie blinked several times and ran a hand through her messy bed hair. Her heart had started pounding frantically when Teddy had mentioned Arizona's name._

_"Are you okay? Is she okay?"_

_Teddy moved her jaw around and winced at the slight pain that was present._

_"I couldn't get her to wake up, Callie. She just keeps saying, 'Please don't do this.' "_

_The Latina's heart jumped into her throat and her stomach threatened to empty its contents. She knew what Arizona was dreaming about. For the life of her, she couldn't understand why Arizona had not spoken to Teddy about her attack. She was unsure of how to respond to the information the other woman had just given her._

_Did she tell Teddy and hope that the heart surgeon was able to help her ex? Did she offer her own help even knowing that Arizona most likely didn't want it? Or, did she just feign ignorance and hope that, come morning, everything would be okay?_

_Life really liked to fuck with her._

_"I'm at a loss, Callie. She's been having that nightmare every night since she moved in. I've tried to talk with her about it, but she acts like she doesn't know what I'm talking about. It's worse tonight. I can't get her to wake up. I'm worried about her."_

_Teddy's words sealed the deal on her decision. Whether or not her ex wanted her to get involved or not, Callie couldn't stand by and let the other woman harm herself. She couldn't let her avoid the issue of her attack and she wouldn't allow her to handle things on her own. She'd told Arizona nearly two months ago, in her hotel room, that she was there for her. She was determined to stand by that statement._

_"I'll be right over, Teddy. Thanks for calling me."_

* * *

_When Callie arrived at Teddy's apartment across town, she'd expected to enter the other doctor's home and find that Arizona was awake and well. When Teddy had opened the door and appeared helpless, Callie had known that her ex was still in the mist of her own personal hell._

_"Thank-you for coming. This seems so silly and she'll probably hate me in the morning, but I didn't know what else to do."_

_The tall Latina entered the semi dark hallway of the front entrance of Teddy's apartment and shrugged out of her jacket._

_"It's fine, honestly. I'm glad you called. Where is she?" Callie replied._

_She'd never been in Teddy's home before and she found that she was actually upset with herself for that minor detail._

_The hazel-eyed heart surgeon sighed with relief and turned away from Callie. Walking down the short hallway, she stopped as she was about to enter her apartment proper._

_"This way." she threw over her shoulder before disappearing around a corner to Callie's right._

_Callie followed her past a dark blue love seat, which she deposited her jacket on the back of, and around another tight corner before coming to a door concealed in shadow._

_"I'm going to try to get some sleep before I have to be at the hospital. If you can't wake her, maybe just being there will ease her out of it." Teddy said, looking hopeful._

_The dark skinned woman nodded her head solemnly and watched her friend move past her to, what she assumed to be, her room across from the door she currently stood in front of._

_Taking a breath to calm herself, Callie gripped the brass handle in front of her and steeled herself for Arizona's possible reaction to her intrusion._

_When she entered the room, she had to allow her eyes a moment to adjust to the added darkness provided by the curtains hanging on the windows to her right._

_She could barely make out the form of her ex lover tangled in the dark colored sheets before her. Arizona's occasional whimper or cry of protest broke her heart. She could practically feel the other woman's panicked breathing as she fought her mind's demons._

_Moving quietly, so as not to disturb or startle the sleeping woman, Callie made her way slowly to Arizona's bed side. The blonde's whispered pleas were clearer to understand the closer she got to her destination._

_"St-stop...I-I...please...don't, don't...somebody...pl-please."_

_The words moved across her soul and took pieces of her heart. She'd never heard the fear, so evident, in her ex's voice before. Even when Gary Clark had shown up on the peds floor and Arizona had covered small Ruby's body with her own, had her voice sounded so heavy, so frightened._

_Callie sat down, gently, next to the blonde and softly called her name. "Arizona? It's Callie. You're okay."_

_She refrained from touching the other woman. Arizona was still jerking and throwing her arms, wildly, away from her body. Her brow was scrunched, giving her a deep frown line, and Callie could see her pulse beating erratically against her throat._

_"Arizona, it's a dream, baby. You're safe and you're here with me. Just calm down, sweetheart. You're here with me." she tried again._

_At first, Callie didn't think her words were having any affect on her ex. The smaller woman continued to cry and fight with her nightmare despite Callie's soothing voice. For several minutes, the Latina repeated her words._

_Finally deciding to chance physical contact, Callie reached out her left hand and tenderly ran her fingers across Arizona's forehead. She kept her touch as light and non-threatening as possible. The blonde jerked at the contact, but her hands fell to her sides and went limp._

_She whimpered something Callie couldn't understand and her legs kicked the sheets from her body. The raven haired woman took in a breath and held it within her chest._

_"Arizona, it's just me. He can't hurt you, baby. It's me...it's me."_

_She noticed her ex lover was sweating profusely as she, once again, moved her fingers tenderly across her brow. Pushing hair away from Arizona's face, Callie let her fingers trail down her cheek softly._

_The power Arizona's nightmare had on her slowly started to waver and disappear. It wasn't immediate by any means, but after a time, Callie was able to calm her ex with just her words and her simple touch._

_When the last bit of tortured fight left Arizona's body and her breathing started to return to normal, Callie smiled as she watched the transformation that took place on the other woman's face. Her brow ceased its fight with itself and her mouth released the tight grip it had on her cheeks. Before Callie's dark eyes, the woman she loved relaxed and her face mirrored that change._

_"You're okay, baby." the tall Latina said once more. She let her fingers move over Arizona's lips in a loving caress._

_A hand against the outside of her thigh caught her attention and she realized that the blonde was reaching for her, even in sleep._

_"Calliope..."_

_The voice caused her heart to beat faster. She looked from her thigh to the other woman's face and sighed. She'd been expecting to find her ex awake, but Arizona continued to sleep soundly._

_Forcing herself to remain silent, Callie swallowed hard and waited._

_"I'm sorry...Callio...sorry...love...you."_

_The blonde's words were slow, slurred, and heavy with sleep. Had Callie not been so aware of the other woman, nor so close, she was sure she would not have understood them. Arizona's fingers were light against her thigh and they soon lost the energy required to grasp her leg._

_Arizona Robbins was now, once again, safely fast asleep._

_Callie smiled fondly and ran her fingers over the other woman's features reverently before standing from the bed as smoothly as possible._

_Bending down, she covered the blonde with the sheet she'd kicked earlier. When her ex was, once more, covered securely, she moved her head to Arizona's and placed a soft kiss on her hair line._

_"I love you, too, baby. Sweet dreams."_

_Walking away from the other woman, Callie quietly shut the door behind her and left Teddy's apartment._

The water was cleansing as it beat down against her body in heated sheets. She kept her eyes closed and sighed as steam continued to rise around her. She'd been happy that Teddy had called her that night. To her knowledge, Arizona had not spoken with anyone about her frightening attack. Though it had no longer been her place, Callie had felt compelled to advise her ex to seek professional help.

_"Callie? What are you doing here?" Arizona asked, confused._

_She stepped away from the front door of Teddy's apartment and allowed her ex to enter. Wearing pink lounge pants and a gray hoodie, the blonde suddenly felt self conscious of her appearance._

_Callie was dressed in a pair of tight, dark jeans, a deep purple top that clung to her chest perfectly, and her trademark black leather jacket. Her shorter hair, which Arizona was still getting used to, was tossed in a wavy manner around her face and only accentuated the fullness of her lips._

_Arizona inhaled deeply and tried to calm her nerves._

_Her ex smiled at her when she entered the apartment but she made no move to proceed any further._

_"I was hoping to see how you were doing." the taller woman answered._

_Arizona frowned and crossed her arms over her chest. She couldn't believe that Callie had come all the way to Teddy's apartment just to see how she was doing. A phone call would have been sufficient._

_"Um, I-I'm fine. Eager to get back to work. Why are you asking?"_

_She was upset with herself for allowing her question to come out more accusatory than she'd meant, but what was done was done._

_Callie licked her lips and sighed. She kept her eyes on Arizona's before responding._

_"You've been having nightmares, Arizona. Teddy knows about them and I know that you're refusing to talk with anyone about it."_

_The blonde immediately went on the defensive. Scoffing and throwing herself away from the wall she'd been leaning against, she walked away from her ex and entered the living room. Callie watched the spot where the other woman had been but a moment ago, before following her around the corner._

_"Don't do this, Arizona. We're both just trying to help."_

_When the Latina entered Teddy's small living room, she found it looked drastically different in the sun's light. The heart surgeon had decorated sparingly and what decorations she did have tended to lean towards esoteric art and darker colors._

_She found her ex sitting on the love seat she'd placed her jacket on a few nights before and smiled to herself._

_On the small flat screen tv below a large window on the far wall, 'Toy Story 3' was playing. Arizona was curled in the corner with her feet tucked underneath her body._

_"Callie, I can handle things on my own."_

_The words were spoken evenly despite the fact that the woman speaking them kept her eyes fixated on the television screen before her._

_Callie scratched the back of her neck and moved to sit next to the blonde._

_"You handle things fine, Arizona, when I'm here to chase away your nightmares."_

_The blue eyed woman looked at her suddenly and lowered her brow in silent question. Buzz Lightyear and Woody continued their antics, oblivious to the tension that had just entered the room._

_"What are you talking about?" Arizona asked slowly._

_Callie smiled sadly at her before standing up and looking around the room. She hadn't wanted to mention her hurried trip/intervention from a few nights ago, but her ex lover's hard-willed stubbornness had forced her hand._

_"Teddy called me on Monday, woke me up." she started. Turning to face the blonde again, she continued, "She told me you were having nightmares and that she was worried about you. It hadn't taken much for me to figure out what villains haunted your sleep, Arizona."_

_The small woman sitting on the love seat lowered her eyes and released an unsteady breath. She knew she'd been having nightmares and she'd known that her roommate had been worried because of them. What she hadn't been aware of was the fact that her friend had been in contact with her ex regarding her twilight struggles._

_"She didn't tell me you'd come by that night. I don't remember."_

_Callie walked towards her and squatted by her legs. She placed her hands on the cushions and tried to ignore the yearning her soul had for the woman regarding her._

_"I was here, Arizona. You calmed down when you heard my voice. When I knew you were okay, I left."_

_The blonde was stunned into silence. She didn't know what to say. Callie had come all the way across town because Teddy had called her and informed she'd been having a nightmare? Her ex hadn't even awakened her to let her know of her presence?_

_Despite their separation, Arizona knew that Callie had been, and still was, the only person who'd ever been able to chase away her tiny coffins, her nightmares. After all their time apart, her body, even in sleep, still responded to the Latina. Her subconscious still found comfort and sanctuary in her ex._

_"Look, you won't talk to Teddy about what happened and you won't talk to me. I get that. I'm not your person anymore, but you need to talk to someone, Arizona. We're both just worried, okay?"_

_Callie stood up and looked back at the tv. Buzz Lightyear was dancing around Jessie the cowgirl while Mr. Potato Head, his wife, and Slinky watched with amused interest. The Latina chuckled at the scene and turned to leave her ex alone._

_"Callie?"_

_Arizona's soft voice stopped her and she glanced over her shoulder at the question she heard spoken in her name._

_"I knew you'd been here that night."_

_Callie turned around fully to face her ex and raised an eyebrow. The blonde smiled shyly and dimples Callie hadn't seen in weeks appeared on her angelic face._

_"When I got up the next morning, I-I thought I smelled your perfume." Arizona said nervously. "I didn't know you'd actually been in my room, b-but I did feel you that morning."_

_The caramel toned woman smiled fully but said nothing._

_"You're still my person, Calliope. I'm just...I'm just trying to teach myself how to trust you again."_

Finishing her shower and quickly throwing a towel over her full body, Callie walked out of the quest bathroom and entered her living room. Boxes sat around in various places haphazardly. A plush pillow and a thick blanket joined her couch verifying the fact that she refused to sleep in her own room.

Owen and Derek had helped her in getting her bed set back up and she knew they'd both be slightly offended if they knew she had yet to actually spend a night in it.

Opening a box resting against the left front leg of her coffee table, the brown eyed woman pulled a pair of shorts from its contents as well as a red camisole. Dressing quickly, she towel dried her hair and flopped onto the cushions of her couch.

Two months ago, the love of her life had returned and caught her, so to speak, in bed with Mark Sloan. Two months ago, she'd been as honest with her ex as she could have been.

One month ago, she'd finally gotten her apartment back. In the two months since her life had crashed and burned, Callie could count on one hand the number of times she'd been in contact with Arizona Robbins.

Her impromptu trip to Teddy's apartment a week and a half ago to beg her ex to seek professional help had been the last time she'd spoken with the blonde headed woman.

Part of her wanted to call Arizona and make sure she was okay, but she knew she no longer had the right. If Arizona wanted to speak with her, she knew where to find her and how to contact her. All she could do was continue to live each day one minute at a time until it faded and a new day was born upon its death.

Sighing and propping her feet up on the table in front of her, Callie turned the tv on across the room and flipped through several channels before finally deciding on _'Dr. G: Medical Examiner'_

She watched intently as the woman on the tv tried desperately to ascertain the cause of death for a young immigrant who'd died within hours of landing in the U.S.

A soft knock at her door aggravated her as she found herself completely immersed in the program. Figuring it was Mark wanting to talk, she ignored it and focused her attention on Dr. Garavaglia. If it was Mark, she hated to refuse to talk with him. He'd done nothing that she hadn't asked for in the first place. It wasn't entirely his fault that they'd ended up sleeping together again.

Sighing with frustration, she removed herself from her makeshift bed and walked backwards towards her front door. Trying to keep her eyes focused on the medical examiner, she fumbled with the lock to her door.

Opening it and tearing her eyes away from the tv, she felt her breath collide with her insides when she saw who waited opposite her.

Long, blonde hair was pulled up in a high tail and Callie let her eyes trace over the soft, enticing curve of Arizona's neck. Her skin was intoxicating. The other woman was wearing a pair of khaki cargo pants and a yellow fleece pullover and her eyes were bright as they stared at Callie.

The tall Latina swallowed hard when she noticed the, not-at-all-shy way Arizona's eyes feasted on her flesh.

Finding her voice, she finally spoke. "Hey...everything okay?"

The blonde smirked at her and cocked her head to the side. She slid her eyes over the smooth expanse of Callie's chest and slowly trailed them over the swell of her breasts. Taking in a breath, she continued her appraisal as she allowed her eyes to take in the barely there shorts hugging her ex's thighs. She finished her sensual gazing by allowing herself several minutes to drink in the sight of long, tanned legs.

When she finally brought her blue eyes back to Callie's face, she noticed her own labored breathing as well as Callie's. The other woman was watching her with a concerned, though highly aroused, look.

"I came to see you. Can I come in?"


	2. Chapter 2

_**"Love is a temporary madness. It erupts like an earthquake and then subsides. And when it subsides you have to make a decision. You have to work out whether your roots have become so entwined together that it is inconceivable that you should ever part. Because this is what love is. Love is not breathlessness, it is not excitement, it is not the promulgation of promises of eternal passion. That is just being "in love" which any of us can convince ourselves we are. Love itself is what is left over when being in love has burned away, and this is both an art and a fortunate accident. Your mother and I had it, we had roots that grew towards each other underground, and when all the pretty blossoms had fallen from our branches we found that we were one tree and not two."  
**__-St. Augustine_

* * *

Arizona Robbins was a creature of habit. She knew this. The world knew this. Change was a natural editct. It was a constant and provided the means for which the world, as a whole, grew unto itself.

Constant or not, Arizona Robbins hated it. She fought against it's inevitability and, as a result, often times came across as a stagnant individual. Change was evolution. Without change, the world and its people would be but a dull paint stroke against an ever black canvas.

Change, ergo evolution, ensured the rebirth of the human race. It brought about new ideas, new arts, new sciences, and new philosophies. Change was the one constant in the universe that gave life to every other constant occurrence.

Growth was change and change was evolution. The three notions were intricately tied together and, through them, the webs of fate were woven.

Arizona Robbins may have bucked change for most of her life, but change had found her in the spirit of one, Calliope Torres. Callie was her change as she was Callie's growth. The two, when brought together, allowed for nature to take its likely course.

Evolution.

Arizona had fought her change at first. She'd been hard headed and convinced herself that she could have the woman that so intrigued her and still keep a firm mind about not allowing things to change.

Fate was the helping hand of evolution and it had intervened on her behalf more than once.

When fate had witnessed her unwillingness to bend, to change, it had taken pity on her, but also, given her a glimpse of where her obstinate attitude was leading.

The hand that fate had used to dole out its universal eye opener had been in the form of one man.

Gary Clark.

When the older man had entered the peds wing and shown up in the room Callie and she had been occupying, Arizona had realized how selfishly stubborn she'd been about the baby issue.

As she'd covered Ruby's body, all she'd been able to think was that Callie was never going to know how much she meant to her. She had cursed herself at the time the two of them had spent apart. That time had been gone, lost to them, and she'd hated herself when she'd realized that it was time they'd never get back.

Fate, upon reading Arizona's heart, spared her and her love. Callie had been the instrument of her safety and when the nightmare had ended and the two of them were standing outside of the hospital, Arizona had still tried to avoid the change.

It had taken Callie, again, to convince her that it was okay to be scared. In the end, they'd both made promises and fate had moved on thinking that the pair's destiny had been safely sealed.

Second chances aren't always favored as highly as they ought to be, though. Everyday life has a way of setting in around a person, or a group of people, and allowing them to forget their grand declarations of love, their heart fealt promises, and their secret convictions to themselves.

Before a person is aware, monotony has brought their growth and their change to a screeching halt. Past mistakes and mis-steps are fallen back on and routines that should have changed are put back in place.

Arizona Robbins had not been above such a thing. In the months that had followed the hospital shooting, she had fallen back into her old habits. She'd gone back to avoiding larger issues in her life and facing forward even when she knew a wreck was waiting in the path before her.

Her stubborn refusal to accept change willingly had gotten fate's attention once again. It had been aware of her toying with her own line and, in another desperate attempt to avoid a disaster, fate had thrown a proverbial splash of cold water in her face.

From the Seattle Airport, to Africa, to hotel rooms and sleepless nights, fate had ridden heavily on her back and forced her to pay it heed. After two months of side stepping feelings, overlooking epiphanies, and wallowing in her own pain, Arizona had finally, finally realized what fate had known all along.

Growth was change. Change was evolution. Evolution was guided by the hand of fate and fate?

Fate was inevitable.

* * *

"I came to you see. Can I come in?"

Callie cleared her throat and threw a quick look over her shoulder. Boxes and clothes and various kitchen supplies were tossed around her apartment in a care free manner. She hadn't wanted Arizona seeing her like this. Hell, she hadn't wanted her seeing her apartment, given the state it was currently in.

She'd wanted the other woman to see her living in a healthy and mature way. She'd wanted Arizona to find a very well put together Calliope Torres. Though the Latina was adjusting well enough to living on her own, two months had not been enough time for her to work out all the kinks in her new self image.

Turning back around, she met the anxious look in her ex's blue eyes.

"Umm, yeah, yeah. Sure, come on in."

She moved to the side of the door and gestured for Arizona to enter the apartment. When the blonde walked past her, she caught her scent on the air. Taking a deep breath to slow the increasing pace of her heart, Callie closed the door and walked past Arizona.

"Umm, are you okay? D-Do you want something to drink?"

She clasped her hands in front of her and rubbed her palms together in an effort to stop the nagging tingling in her fingertips.

Arizona watched as Callie walked towards her kitchen area. The sway of her hips and the way her shorts seemed to ride higher up her thighs as she walked caused the blonde's blood to pump faster through her body.

Her ex was barely dressed and the amount of skin she was currently tracing her eyes over was driving her mad.

Licking her lips and looking around, what had once been her apartment, Arizona replied, though she was unsure of whether or not her answer was sufficient.

"Yeah, that sounds fine."

Callie nodded her head and turned towards her refrigerator. Steadying her hands, or attempting to, she grabbed a bottle of water from the top shelf and sat it on the counter next to her. When she turned back around, she noticed Arizona looking directly at her.

"Sorry about the mess. I haven't really had much time to unpack." the raven haired woman lied.

Arizona's silence was unnerving. She couldn't imagine why the other woman had come to see her. Whatever her reasons, Callie found herself hoping that the blonde would say what she had to say and leave.

Her presence was making Callie dizzy.

"It's fine. I didn't come over to have a discussion on the finer points of interior decorating." the smaller woman said and a slight smile graced her perfect mouth.

Smiling softly herself, Callie decided to try for a bit of small talk.

"Umm, are you hungry? I could...I could fix us something to eat."

"You're an idiot."

The words shocked her, so crazy they were. Left field had definitely just entered their conversation.

"Umm, okay. I didn't know social niceties were a factor in idiocy, but...okay." Callie said as she lowered her eyebrows into a look of utter confusion.

Arizona ignored her flippant remark and walked toward her.

"I'm an idiot. You're an idiot! What are we doing here? How did we end up here?" the blue eyed woman's words were gaining audible momentum.

Callie turned her head to the side and regarded her ex.

"So, you came over to call me names and now you want to have an existential debate?"

Arizona shook her head and walked around the island her ex lover was standing behind. She watched as a visible shudder rolled through Callie's body and her eyes grew darker the closer she got to the taller woman.

When she was standing in front of the Latina, she looked up into her face and smiled at the badly concealed arousal painted on the other woman's features.

"I'm not going to let you take all the blame and I'm such an idiot for taking so long to see things clearly." she said.

Callie swallowed but said nothing. She could feel herself becoming lost in Arizona's blue eyes.

"And you? You're an idiot for trying to take all the blame. I'm the one who left you! _I_ walked away._ I_ broke you!" She scoffed with her own self disgust. "And I've been putting you through hell because I'd convinced myself that_ I_ needed to learn how to trust _you_. You, Calliope, need to learn how to trust me! We're idiots!"

The dark skinned woman could do nothing but keep her eyes focused on the woman in front of her. She was afraid to say or do anything. The situation still had yet to reveal itself and she was unsure of what the appropriate response would be when it did.

Arizona stepped closer to her and invaded her personal space. She heard herself take a shaky breath as her heart starting to beat faster.

"I'm sorry, Calliope."

Callie closed her eyes and bit her lip. Arizona was calling her Calliope. She was speaking to her in the tone that the Latina had come to associate when she called her by her full name. Was Arizona here to forgive her? Was she here to mend their relationship?

A feather light caress across her jaw forced her to open her eyes.

Arizona was lightly tracing a path along her jawline and under her chin. Her blue eyes seemed to be mesmerized by her own actions.

Callie didn't know how to respond or even if she was allowed to respond. She couldn't believe that her ex was here and that she was touching her skin and saying her name. Placing a hand on the counter to her left, she released a slow breath and continued to remain silent.

Arizona seemed to have entered a world all her own. The softness of Callie's skin under her touch was having a more profound affect on her than she'd anticipated. Nothing else mattered to her, or even existed for her, apart from the woman before her.

She watched her fingers, pale in comparison, move down Callie's neck and smooth over her pulse point. The overly paced beating beneath her fingers caused her to smile. She felt the taller woman swallow, almost painfully.

"I've missed this." Arizona whispered to herself.

Callie released a small sigh and stepped closer to the blue eyed woman. She made no further move. Uncertainty was keeping her from giving in to what she craved so desperately. Arizona could decide she didn't want anything else to do with her. She could step away and leave at any moment.

Callie glanced down at the fingers on her flesh when she felt them against her collar bone. Her heart was pounding against her ribs in an erratic pattern and she was sure Arizona was aware of that fact.

The blonde's fingers were soft and warm and, in their wake, a pleasurable electricity burned across Callie's body. This wasn't how Arizona had touched her the last time they'd had physical contact. It wasn't rushed or hurried or quick. It was slow and tender and reverent.

When she felt Arizona's touch smooth across her sternum and dip, dangerously close, towards her breasts, she inhaled sharply and looked back up at the smaller woman's face.

"What are you doing?" she asked in an unsteady breath.

Arizona didn't answer her immediately. The steady, reassuring, thump underneath her fingers was a balm to her soul. She was the cause of it's increased pace. She was the cause of Callie's shallow breathing. It humbled the peds surgeon; the knowledge that she had brought about these awe inducing reactions.

"I'm wanting you." the blonde answered, finally, and brought her eyes up to meet unsure brown.

Callie sighed again and a timid smile attempted to make itself known on her lips. She wanted Arizona to want her but she was so afraid of being left behind again. She was frightened that things would never be the same for them. Maybe Arizona just wanted a quick piece of ass and then she'd move on and teach the next poor newborn she came across.

How was Callie to be sure of anything when everything in her world had already crashed and burned?

The blonde in front of her closed the last remaining space between them and teasingly nudged her nose across across her lips.

"Arizona..." Callie pleaded, though she was usure of what exactly she was pleading for.

"Do you still want me?" Arizona asked as she brought her right hand back up to Callie's neck while her left landed against the Latina's right hip.

So, the moment of truth had finally arrived. Did she say yes or did she say no? Of course her answer to the question was yes. She did want her. All of her. Forever. But, she didn't want for them to become nothing more than friends with benefits. If that was all Arizona was wanting, Callie wasn't sure how to answer the question.

"I love you, Calliope. I don't care about anything else. I hurt you, baby, and I am so sorry for that. I want to just forgive and forget. So, I am asking you: do you still want me?"

As the blonde spoke the words, she moved her lips along Callie's jaw and continued speaking until she had reached her ear. The smell of the Latina's shampoo and body wash was causing her mouth to go dry. She was tired of talking. She was tired of avoiding. They'd both fucked up, but she didn't care. Her life was dull and meaningless without Callie. She'd thought, after finding out that her ex had slept with Mark Sloan, that nothing would ever bring the two of them back together.

She'd been wrong. The time that had passed since her finding out had been time well spent. She'd had time to think and remember and contemplate. She'd had time to assess herself and reevaluate your own life and her own shortcomings in their relationship.

Time had given her the chance to see that she had no life without Calliope.

"Please say yes." she whispered against the sensitive skin of Callie's ear. She felt, as well as heard, the other woman release a heavy breath. The warmth that passed through her hair set her nerves on fire.

Callie found that she couldn't speak. Her emotions were running too high and her mind was clouded with too many waring thoughts. Turning her head down, she allowed herself to inhale Arizona's scent. The blonde turned her head as well and before either of them could change positions, they were nose to nose.

Heavy breathing was the only sound evident to both of them. In the living room, Callie's tv continued to display Dr. G, but the audio was nothing to her but subdued noise.

Arizona was so close to her. Her hands were on her body and her breath was against her lips. Callie parted her lips slightly, but she made no move to accelerate matters any.

She felt the smaller woman leaning into her and, without a doubt, she knew what was coming next.

"I've always loved this part." Arizona said softly, just shy of kissing her. Callie could feel the blonde's lips moving to form her words.

As before, the tall Latina remained silent and waited for her...lover? to finish her thought.

"This feeling. The anticipation. The moment before your lips touch mine. It's always been my favorite, so if you want me to stop, you need to tell me now."

Callie was too far gone to speak. She was too far gone to think. Her body was telling her to kiss the other woman. She wanted to. Every night since she'd left Arizona's hotel, she'd dreamed of a moment similar to this one. And now? Now, it was here and she was drowning in its intoxicating affects.

Her silence must have been a cue to the blonde because a moment later, she felt soft, hesitant lips tenderly press against her own.

The touch was hesitant, as if Arizona was familiarizing herself with the feeling of Callie's mouth against her own. Before Callie could respond to the kiss, the blonde pulled away slightly and playfully rubbed her nose along the taller woman's. Catching her breath, Arizona leaned back in and lightly kissed Callie a second time. Her lips were more insistent than from a moment before.

The Latina kissed her back. She could barely think with everything she was feeling. Arizona was barely kissing her, barely applying any pressure and she had yet to even slip her tongue into her mouth. The kiss was unsure and slow, but it was making her increasingly wet despite those things.

Callie felt the hand on her neck move and trail tenderly down her left arm. Arizona took a deep breath, turned her head, and kissed her a third time. Each kiss was slightly more heated than the one before it. When Callie moaned softly against the blonde's lips, the smaller woman used the gesture as her excuse to let her tongue glide hotly along her bottom lip.

Arizona was in heaven. The woman in front of her was breathing in short gasps and her lips were wet and velvety soft. She continued to trail her right hand over Callie's skin slowly. The appreciative half moans coming from the other woman was almost enough to send her to her own release.

Moving her left hand as well, she brought the fingers of both hands to the hem of the Latina's shirt. Callie's sharp pant caused a surge of renewed moisture between her thighs. She moved their bodies slightly until she had the taller woman with her back against the counter of the kitchen. Pressing against her softly, she slowly ran her hands underneath Callie's camisole.

The dark skinned woman pulled her head back and attempted to draw air into her body. Things were happening so quickly, she was unsure of how exactly they'd gotten to this point. What had caused this change in the blonde? What had brought about this heated make-out session?

Arizona was touching her the way she had the first time they'd ever made love together. Callie had thought never to feel that sense of apprehensive excitement before.

She noticed the other woman was watching here with deep blue eyes and that her hands on her skin had ceased their movements. Her own heavy breathing was mirrored in the other woman.

"Are you sure about this?" she asked Arizona.

The smaller woman smiled and pushed her hands higher up her body until they came to the underside of her breasts.

"I love you. I'm sure about that. I want you. I'm sure about that, too."

Callie swallowed hard and licked her lips. The blonde's fingers were running along her stomach, her ribs, and her breasts. She was slowly approaching the point of no return.

"I want to show you how I feel, Calliope. This is my apology for everything. Let me make love to you." Arizona whispered against the skin of her neck. Warm lips against her throat caused her to moan and release a shuddering breath.

Arizona loved her. She wanted her. After two, nearly three months, they were both together again in their old apartment slowly making their way towards a complete unification with each other.

Gently threading her hands through silky fine blonde hair, Callie brought Arizona's face up and stared into her eyes. Staring back, reflected in those azure orbs, was nothing but love. Love and passion and need.

"I love you so much, Arizona and I've missed you. Make love to me. Make me feel." she said in a hurried tone. Her emotions were taking over now and her mind was stepping to the side to allow them to do so.

The last time she and Arizona had made love had been at the blonde's hotel two months ago. That encounter had been more physical than emotional and, although she'd gotten off, it had left her feeling empty and confused.

The blue eyed woman smiled at her, dimples flashing, before leaning against her more fully and drawing her tongue along Callie's mouth. Forcing her mouth to part with her touch, Arizona slipped her tongue inside Callie's mouth and kissed her with wanton lust.

The hands she had under Callie's top worked quickly to remove the offensive material from the Latina's body. She felt Callie's hands moving over her skin frantically. It was as if the taller woman couldn't touch her enough and so was unsure of where to touch her first.

She moaned into her lover's mouth and moved her right hand up to cup a round, full breast. Callie groaned and bit at her lips when she felt the contact. Her back was being pressed, painfully, against the counter behind her, but she was too involved in everything Arizona was doing to care.

"Hop up." she heard being whispered in her ear. Lips ran down her throat and nipped her softly.

Opening her eyes, she sighed and hopped up on the counter behind her. Arizona parted her thighs and stepped between them so she could continue kissing her. The hand on her breast squeezed her pliant flesh and moved to whisper a caress across her hardened nipple.

Callie ran her hands through Arizona's hair and held her close to her body. She brought her legs up and wrapped them around the smaller woman's hips. Letting her knees fall apart, she completely opened herself for the smaller woman.

"Oh god..." escaped from Callie's lips.

She rested her weight on her right arm and used her left to continue holding Arizona's head to her chest. Already, her hips were moving at a slow pace.

Arizona licked around her nipple before closing her lips around it. She could feel the increasing beat of Callie's heart against her lips and she smiled. Moving to lavish her lover's other nipple with equal attention, the blonde let her hands explore Callie's body.

She ran them fully over the Latina's honey toned thighs and around her short covered hips. Squeezing the flesh and intermittently dragging her nails across Callie's skin, Arizona brought her head up and kissed and licked up the taller woman's chest and neck.

When she reached full lips, she praised them with her own. Callie attacked her mouth with equal passion. Arizona was touching her in all the right places in all the right ways. She was unsure of everything except the woman between her legs. Every good, positive emotion in the world was coursing through her body and begging her to pay it the most attention.

When she felt the blonde pull her mouth away from her own, she groaned in frustration and opened her eyes. The blue eyed woman was panting heavily and staring into her soul.

She felt a hand, that had been smoothing along her left thigh, move in a different direction and with purpose. Her eyes widened and her throat constricted. She knew where Arizona was going to touch her next. Her knees fell apart further as she waited.

Arizona ran her fingers along the inside of Callie's thigh and gasped when she felt a wet heat greet her. She hadn't even made it to the source of the heat and already her fingers were sliding across its evidence. She smiled at Callie.

Bringing her fingers up higher, she felt the woman spread out before her, take a sharp breath.

"Can I touch you here?" she asked and Callie was floored. She felt like a virgin about to be touched for the first time. Arizona was asking for her permission to touch her in the most intimate of ways? The question tugged at her heart and increased her arousal all the more.

Keeping her left hand against the blonde's neck, she bit her bottom lip and nodded her head slowly.

Arizona smiled and kept her eyes locked with Callie's. Moving her fingers up higher, she slowly brought them to the Latina's covered center. A dizzying heat welcomed her as she rubbed her fingers against Callie's sex.

When she'd found out Callie had slept with Mark, the knowledge that someone other than her had touched Callie this way had broken her heart. She was supposed to have been the only person allowed this special privilege. She was supposed to have been the one bringing Callie to satisfaction.

The knowledge that Mark Sloan had touched her partner had been too much to handle at the time. She'd known that the man, as well as Callie's other past lovers, had touched Callie in much the same way she had, but that had been before her. That had been before Arizona had touched her. Before the two of them had fallen in love.

She was supposed to have been the last person to touch Callie in this way. Her. Arizona Robbins. No one else. Yet, someone else had. A man. Mark Sloan. Someone else had put his hands on Callie's body and touched her lips with his own. Another had touched her intimately and Arizona despised herself for walking away and leaving Callie. Her actions had brought about the Latina's desperate choices and decisions. Because of Arizona's need to control everything and her reluctance to face problems head on, Mark fucking Sloan had enjoyed her girlfriend's body.

It sickened her. But that was all in the past. She was here, now, touching Callie in the most wonderful and glorious of ways. She was the one running her fingers up and down Callie's length. She was the one causing the other woman's jerky movements and shallow breathing. Her. She was making love, slowly, to Callie and she thanked the powers that be for giving her a second chance to do so.

Callie moaned and whimpered as she continued to rub her through her shorts. The blonde could practically feel the pulsating throbbing of Callie's clit and it made her want to take her, quickly, on the kitchen counter.

"Please...don't stop, Arizona. Please...please..."

Arizona gently brought her lips to Callie's and kissed her softly. She wanted Callie to feel her. She wanted her to know, without a doubt, how she felt about her. The other woman tried to kiss her back, but her labored breathing interfered.

"Never, baby. Never again. I love you." she whispered against the Latina's mouth.

Callie smiled and pulled away from her. Looking down her body, she moaned at the sight of her naked torso and the blonde's fingers stroking her sex.

"Not here, Arizona. Take me to bed." she said, pushing past her own arousal.

She didn't want them to make love on her kitchen counter. She wanted to feel the blonde's body against her own. She wanted her first time back in her bed to be with Arizona's body next to hers.

The smaller woman kissed her chastely and stopped her ministrations between her legs. Stepping back, she helped Callie off the counter before stepping forward and wrapping her arms around her.

Kissing a caramel shaded shoulder, Arizona ran her hands along Callie's sides. The blue eyed woman looked back into her lover's eyes and smiled. Callie leaned down and kissed her and the two of them started a slow, halting and awkward trek towards the bedroom.

On the way, the taller woman did her best to divest the blonde of her clothing. By the time the two of them had reached her bedroom, Arizona was wearing only her cargo pants which were unbuttoned and halfway over her hips.

"You're the first." Callie said kissing the blonde's lips.

She shoved her hands in Arizona's pants and moved them around her hips so she could work on lowering them to the floor. A gasp against her face informed her that the blonde appreciated her touch.

"What?" she smaller woman asked.

"I haven't slept in here or even been in the bed since I moved back in. You'll be first person person, the only person, to share it with me."

Arizona smiled at Callie's words and stepped out of her pants. Turning the other woman around, she started pushing her towards the bed. Her hands found Callie's shorts and she squeezed the Latina's supple behind.

When the back of the raven haired woman's knees connected with her bed, she felt herself being pushed, softly backward. Sitting on the mattress, she looked up with dark eyes at the blonde.

Arizona kept her eye contact and slowly removed her panties from her body. Tossing them aside, she moved to stand directly in front of Callie and smiled down at her. Her fingers tangled themselves in short, dark hair and a pair of tanned hands found their way to her hips.

Callie was watching her with ebony shaded eyes and her lust and desire were obvious to the blonde. Bending down on to her knees, Arizona removed her hands from the other woman's hair and lowered them to her shorts. Slowly, she managed to remove them and as they slipped past Callie's ankles, she brought her own body up and pushed the Latina back against the bed.

Callie barely had time to scoot halfway up the mattress before Arizona's body was on top of her own and the two of them were moaning at the sensation of their skin's connection. She could feel the blonde's breasts against her own and her wetness against her thigh and it solidified and made real what was happening between them.

They were reconnecting. They were being born again. They were making love.

Callie felt herself start to shake as her emotions finally broke her resolve. Gentle, cleansing tears fell from her eyes and she laughed softly, happily, at her new found knowledge.

Arizona met her lips in a tender yet passionate embrace and silenced her sobs. Her tears continued to fall, though, and they mixed with their lazy kiss.

"I love you so much. I've got you now, Calliope. I love you. I love you."

The blonde's words were everywhere. Her mouth was moving from the taller woman's lips to her chin, her cheeks, her nose and finally to her eyes where they kissed away her tears.

A hand moved slowly between their bodies and Callie spread her legs wider to accommodate the touch she knew she'd soon be rewarded with. Arizona slowly parted her folds and ran her fingers through her wetness.

Her touch was exploratory in nature. The blonde let her head fall to a tanned neck and she let her lips move without purpose across the skin she found there. The moisture rushing to greet her fingers was her making. She had brought it about. She was what it wanted, what it had been produced for.

Callie's breathing was ragged against her ear and she felt the other woman's hands moving along her back in a slow pattern. Bringing her head back up, she looked down into her lover's face.

"Open your eyes and look at me." she said quietly into the silence of the room.

The Latina complied without complaint and met smokey blue eyes with her own deep dark brown.

As soon as Arizona saw that she had Callie's attention, she moved her fingers lower and slowly, very slowly, entered her with a single digit. She watched Callie's reaction the entire time. The other woman's eyes were half-lidded and her breathing was becoming even more shallow. Her breath hitched and Arizona brought her movements to a halt.

"Are you okay?" she asked Callie, her voice full of concern.

The last time she'd touched Callie like this, she'd entered her with more force than she'd thought herself capable of. Her anger, her sorrow, over their situation had caused her to do things to Callie's body that had made her sick. She remembered the cry that had escaped Callie's lips when she'd practically forced herself inside of her. The memory still haunted her.

"Yes, I'm fine, baby. It's just been a while since anyone touched me this way." the Latina replied.

Arizona felt Callie's muscles relax and a moment later, her finger inside of her was being pulled and hugged farther inside it's tight channel.

"More, Arizona. More" the dark skinned woman begged. Her eyes were still open, but just barely.

The blonde leaned down and kissed her softly on the lips before adjusting her hand between Callie's thighs and entering her, just as slowly, with a second finger.

She felt the other woman press down on her fingers and before she was aware, Callie was moving against them in a slow, delicious rhythm. One of the taller woman's hands attached itself to one of the blonde's breasts while the other wrapped itself securely behind a creamy neck.

Heavy breathing, sharp pants, pleasurable gasps and the sound of Arizona's fingers entering and reentering Callie's sex slowly filled the room around them.

Their movements were not frantic or hurried or rushed to ensure that single inevitable conclusion. The moved to feel. To feel the other. They moved so that the other knew of their love.

Arizona felt her own tears, tears she rarely ever released, spill from her eyes and fall down her face. Callie saw them and lowered her brow. She couldn't believe the blonde was crying, that she had was so moved by their actions that her emotions manifested themselves so.

Leaning forward, she kissed the other woman tenderly.

"I love you, Arizona. I never stopped."

She continued to move her hips and meet the wonderful feeling of Arizona's fingers inside of her. The smaller woman's touch was soft and gentle, yet also passionate and hot. Arizona had never touched her like she currently was. Even their first time together had not been so gentle. They'd both made love passionately to the other, as lovers often do their first time together.

This experience was entirely new to Callie. It truly was what Arizona had told her. An apology. A great act of love.

"I love you, too." the blonde said, but her words were choked off by her own crying. She let her head fall, once again, to Callie's neck and shoulder and continued to move her fingers inside of her.

The hand on her breast was squeezing her with more urgency the longer they both prolonged their lovemaking. Callie's fingers at the base of her neck were slowly climbing up her into her hair and their sensations moved Arizona like nothing else could have.

Positioning herself against the Latina's thigh, she proceeded to rub her sex, wetly, against it as she increased her finger's pace slightly.

They moved together for what felt like hours. Whispered and heated declarations of love were spoken over and over to one another. Breathing increased as hearts raced to supply blood to vital organs. Tears released themselves and fingers and lips touched everywhere they could.

When Arizona felt herself starting to come, she slowed her pace against Callie's thigh and brought her head up to meet her lover's face.

Callie turned to greet her and smiled before nodding her head.

"It's okay...go ahead."

The blonde shook her blonde head. "No, I want you to come first."

The Latina laughed and moved her hips faster against Arizona's fingers. She heard the moan that escaped pink lips and a moment later, the smaller woman was rubbing herself hotly, once again, on her thigh.

Their orgasms roared through their bodies and caused them both to nearly scream with abandon. Time lost all meaning and the only thing the two of them could hold on to was each other. They were each other's life line in an ocean of pleasure in a world of love.

Arizona had never felt her fingers being squeezed so tightly as they were now. It was almost painful as was the buring hot sensation that was currently assaulting her clit as her orgasm burned through her body.

The amount of liquid heat that spilled past her fingers was everything she wanted. Everything she lived for. Callie was coming because of her and that was how it should have been. The beautiful, wonderful sounds coming from Callie's equally beautiful mouth were music to her ears. Her name being sung from those full lips was her undoing and she felt herself come again against her lover's thigh.

Her body shook violently and in another breath, both she and Callie were still. Her body collapsed on top of the dark skin beneath her and all was quiet in the room.

There was so much that still needed to be said. There were conversations in their future that need to be discussed. Planning needed to take place. Decisions needed to be made. Promises needed to be spoken.

As Arizona moved to Callie's side and wrapped her in her arms, the knowledge of everything they needed to do made her smile. She knew that all those things would take place. She would ensure that they did. Twice, she'd lost Callie because of her stubborn pig-headedness. She wasn't ever going to allow a third occurrence to take place.

She felt the Latina begin to cry and a moment later, a long tanned leg was thrown across her body. Arizona ran her hands through Callie's shorter hair and peppered light, reassuring kisses across her brow.

"I love you, Calliope.

Callie sniffed and ran her ran across the blonde's chest. Laughing with her own contentment, she kissed the side of the blonde's neck.

"I love you, too, Arizona. Let's not be idiots anymore, okay?"

The blue eyed woman wrapped her arms around her more tightly and sighed. Trailing her hands down Callie's arm, she replied, "It's a deal. No more being idiots."


End file.
